


I'm a changeling, see me change

by Eilisande



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: F/M, Post-Canon, Romance, Sidhe, autistic Toby
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-28
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2020-03-26 06:42:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19000432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eilisande/pseuds/Eilisande
Summary: There is an owl carved on the porch in front of Sarah's window and she knows she's being watched. She refuses to be traumatized by her run in the labyrinth, but cannot prevent some creatures to take an interest in her. When Toby disappears again, she must find him alone ... or accept some help she doesn't want.





	1. The owl on the porch

**Author's Note:**

> Translation of one of my texts. Enjoy and let me know if you liked it.

There was an owl carved on the porch in front of Sarah's apartment. Every morning and every night she made sure it hadn't moved. Often she waked up started, her heart pounding. In those moments, it was hard to remember that she wasn't in the hall of her parents' house. She had to open the window to get rid of the ozone smell of that stormy night that lingered in her memory. Then, she curled up in her bed, a pillow on her head so as not to hear the flapping wings of the owl and the clock striking the twelve strokes.

Every time the morning after, she stayed a long time at the window, fixing the stone owl. Maybe one day she could decide if she was more relieved or disappointed to see it always in the same place. In any case, she would have liked to notice its presence before renting her student room.

Of course, it was quite possible that the owl only appeared after she signed the lease. That was the kind of thing he would do.

Sarah did not need to see the owl move to know she was being watched all the time. Sometimes she felt like a friendly presence not far from her. Those days, she wanted to laugh and sing. She was absolutely sure that it was her goblin friends who followed her, even now that she could no longer see them. Every evening she left a cup of milk for them at the window. Stories, after all, said it was the right thing to do.

In the morning, the cup was always empty. Sarah did not know if it was her friends or her neighbour's cat who enjoyed it. The cat sometimes jumped on her window ledge from the neighbour's balcony, but Sarah had never caught him. It was probably him anyway. The more time passed, the harder it was to remember that the goblins and the labyrinth were not a dream. Why did her friends disappear? It wasn't fair.

Sarah smiled as she realized that she was falling back into childishness. Life was not fair. The fairy world less still. On reflection, the very idea of justice was a lie. All the same, Sarah had won that night. It seemed legitimate, after the hardships she had endured, that she could continue to see her companions. Unfortunately, she had only theories to explain their absence and no certainty. She could only hope that her memories were real, that she wasn't being followed everywhere, that it was just paranoia.

It was the only thing that convinced her that she was not crazy when it was another presence she felt close to her. Sometimes she felt followed by a tenacious grudge hanging out all day long. More rarely, an oppressive and haunting presence seemed to follow each of her steps, leaving her out of breath before the end of the day. On those days, even the people around her seemed affected and ended up avoiding her.

Slowly breathing, Sarah drove her worries away, retrieved the empty cup from the window sill and closed it. The curtains hid the owl from view again. Like every morning, Sarah had to force herself to focus on mundane things rather than wandering in her thought. She would have to buy milk and eggs. She would take the opportunity to make the change for the laundromat. She still had enough pasta and vegetables to hold until the end of the week. She had to go to the library to check some references and especially to see her teacher.

In the past, she had defeated the Goblin King himself. Today, she had to think about the fact that she only had two pairs of clean socks left.

No, life was not fair, but it loved irony.

Sarah ordered her papers and books and stuffed them in her bag. Then, she grabbed her keys and went out. As she put the keys in the lock of her apartment, she shuddered. She wasn't alone. There was someone behind her and she could feel their breath in her neck. She turned, but the presence was still behind her, coldly amused by her behaviour. Terrorized, she reopened the door and took refuge in the apartment. The unpleasant sensation disappeared and Sarah leaned against the door, trying to catch her breath, terribly aware that her keys had remained on the lock, on the other side and that she was no longer safe on this side of the door. She wanted to be able to stay there all day. Her apartment was an island of security for her. Whoever it was who followed her in public places, they left her alone in her home. But if she made the choice to hide there for a whole day, she would never dare leave her house ever again. Inspiring a long sip of air, she reopened the door.

The presence was still there but was staying at a reasonable distance. Relieved, Sarah retrieved her keys and went down the stairs. At the bottom, she met her owner shivering, a shawl on her shoulders.

"It's crazy this sudden cold with this big sun," she mumbled. "Is there an open window up there?"  
"Nothing at all," Sarah said, letting her go upstairs to check.

She hurried out, certain that the atmosphere would warm up inside. While putting her keys in her bag, she checked that the owl was still in its place and blinked. It was gone.

Then, a cloud went before the sun and Sarah realized that it was only an effect of the brightness. The owl was still here. Breathing again, she walked away as fast as she could.  
Her landlady was right. The weather was beautiful and the heat exceptional for Oxford this season. Sarah decided not to take the bus. She had time, after all. On foot she joined Merton College where she had a meeting with Professor Dyntoshire, wondering what the weather was like in America and how her family was doing. She missed them, of course, but she loved this city, especially on sunny days like this.

 

When she arrived in the old college, she joined the professor's office, knocked at the door and waited for him to call her inside. The old, stern professor did not rise to greet her but pointed to the chair for her to sit down. Sarah took the time to take out her papers and take a look at Midsummer Eve's reproduction hanging on the wall. As always, she wondered if fairies of this kind, sweet and cheery, really existed or if the ignoble but endearing Goblins were the only real mythological creatures.

"So Miss William," asked the professor, "have you finished your paper?"

Sarah cursed her distraction and sat up straighter in her chair.

"Yes, sir."

He grabbed the file she was holding out and consulted it, shaking his head regularly before putting it on top of a large pile.

"I will keep you informed of your note. And now, have you thought about this thesis project?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you again for accepting to supervise me.

"You are smart and rational. I do not agree with all your ideas, but you have the merit to be interested in understudied aspects of folklore."

Sarah did not blush under the professor's compliment, even though they were rare. She had learned not to be dismounted by contempt and insult. She particularly distrusted compliments. They gave power over the other.

About her thesis ... That was the heart of the problem, really. There was so much that Sarah wanted to understand, wanted to master, and myths and folklore said so little. Never again would she feel helpless and prisoner.

"I do not really know," she admitted.

"The last time we saw each other, you talked about the loss of innocence in fairy tales," the teacher insisted. "This subject has potential. Remains to see under what angle you wish to approach it."  
Yes, she had thought about it. The subject satisfied her less and less, however. It was too close to her personal story and it was out of the question for her to fall back into the self-reflexion of her childhood. She had lost her innocence that night, but she was sure she had won something in exchange. Sarah looked up to fix Midsummer Eve's reproduction again. Just like that, she knew what she wanted to study.

"The words of power. I want to study speech as a source of power in fairy folklore."

These words seemed to resonate in the silence of the room and curl around Sarah's chair. She held a smile, not to annoy a potential spectator. Yes, it was a good choice. She did not want to understand what had happened to her, nor to find out if it was real. She didn't need or want to study her adventure from the perspective of psychoanalysis. No, what she wanted was weapons to attack in response if it were real. If she was confronted by this world again. Understanding it, defending herself was insufficient, it was the reaction of a frightened girl. She wanted to be able to fight and win again, but no more by chance.

The professor raised an eyebrow.

"It's a bit drastic change. You will have to go back to your corpus and start over your searches from scratch."

"I can do it."

"We will see that. All the same, it is strange to go from the issue of fairy's victims to their powers."

"In fact, I am more interested in the question of speech and language as a mean to confront the fairies."

"Start from a comparative point of view, at first. Very well. The holidays start tomorrow. I come back on the 30th. That leaves you a month to convince me that this new choice is the right one, with a good corpus to support it, of course."

Sarah smiled broadly as she collected her belongings. The professor was already ignoring her to look on his corrections and gave her a distracted hand sign that looked less like a goodbye than an order to disappear.

Once in the hall, Sarah leaned against the wall and sighed with relief. The teacher had no patience for uncertain students. If he had not found her subject interesting, he would probably have kicked her out with orders to find another thesis supervisor. Once she was not overwhelmed by relief, she realized what the teacher had also requested her to do and she slammed her forehead. She felt like an idiot. She hasn't realized at the time that she had committed to a titanic job for the coming month. Knowing the professor, he would be only half satisfied with her research and would make her start again from scratch two or three times just to constitute her initial bibliography. Two months locked in the library, that's what awaited her. She had to renounce to any hope of returning to America before the fall. But she couldn't be sorry for herself. It would not have happened if she had been less indecisive. With a decided step, she went to the library.

 

She stayed a long time at the library. When she got off the bus in her street, the evening was already well advanced and Sarah was exhausted. Her brain seemed unable to stop thinking and crisscrossed references to consult the next day. She was so tired she nearly forgot to stop to check if the owl was still in its place. She was neither hungry nor thirsty, she just wanted to crumble in her bed and not leave for two days, at least. The unpleasant presence had stuck to her feet all day long. Sarah's discomfort had almost kept her from concentrating.

The noise she made when opening and closing the door of the house attracted her landlady.  
"Miss William, you've received a call earlier. I noted the number on the dresser, you should call back tonight."

Sarah nodded and waited until her landlady had disappeared into her living room and closed the door to get to the phone. That was one of the reasons she chose this student room, even if it was quite far from the colleges and the libraries. There was no phone in her room. This way, her parents were forced to call her at set times rather than ringing her at ease. Anyway, she had not kept any of her childhood friends after her adventure. They had nothing in common now. At Oxford, she had only made distant connexions with her fellow students. Only the understanding of the Underworld interested her now. She called her family about twice a week, mostly to talk to Toby, the few times he was in a talkative mood.

Besides the handset, she found a phone number. English, unknown to Sarah. Curious, she picked up the handset and dialled the number. She felt her stomach twisting. The surprises and the unknown displeased her supremely but it was unlikely that the inhabitants of the Underworld had learned to use modern technology.

"Good evening, I'm Miss William," Sarah asked as soon as someone took the phone. "Did you tried to contact me earlier in the day?"

"Miss William? Please wait."

The voice was male and doubtful. He had to put his hand on the phone because Sarah only heard a muffled murmur. Tired, she was getting impatient when the voice resounded again.

"A moment if you please, I give you room 307."

Sarah spent the long seconds of waiting to speculate in vain on who could contact her from a hotel. Finally, she heard her mother-in-law's voice.

"Sarah, is that you? It's been hours that we try to reach you!"

The girl refrained from retorting sharply that she had studies to carry out and that she could no more be at their disposal than they were systematically present at the times they had set well in advance. She hoped she became more mature with the years.

"I was busy with my research, my thesis project will be validated in September," she replied rather before adding the only argument likely to interest her mother-in-law. "It is a very famous teacher who will mentor me."

"Oh. That's good, I guess."

Her indifference did not surprise Sarah. She got used to it and was satisfied with it. Their exchanges never dragged on and they had to endure them only a short time.

"Is my father here?" She asked to end the silence. "What are you doing in England?"

"Oh, we are on an unforeseen business trip. A colleague of your father had to withdraw. Your father replaced him unexpectedly and must sign a big contract tomorrow. He is not here at the moment, but in a business meeting, to prepare the signature. His client invited us to discover England, its culture and its history. He made us visit London this afternoon, it was great. We are in London for another three days, you have to come tomorrow. We could go shopping together and eat at the hotel. Toby miss you so much!"

Sarah had ten times opened her mouth during her mother-in-law's logorrhea to refuse. The mere mention of Toby stopped her and she sighed.

"I cannot come during the day," she sighed, "I must advance my research. Can I come in the late afternoon and spend the evening with you?"

Her mother-in-law only protested for two seconds. They quickly settled the last details of her arrival, eager to say goodbye. Sarah hung up with relief, then climbed down to her bed, just taking the time to put her research on her desk.

 

The Oxford train dropped her in London at six o'clock and Sarah rushed into the subway trying to contain her repulsion. She hated this city with passion and its subway even more. The corridors reminded her of others where she had almost been killed by a metal machine. She did not breathe properly until she arrived in the hotel lobby.

She was guided to a living room where she waited a few minutes before her parents joined her. She could not miss her mother-in-law's grimace of disappointment when she saw her dressed in simple jeans in this luxury hotel. A little proud of herself, as every time she did not correspond to what Irene would have wanted her to be, but trying to hide it, Sarah got up to embrace her father. The embrace was brief and clumsy, as always.

"Where is Toby?" Sarah finally asked as they sat around a table and her father had hailed a waiter.

"The hotel offers to make the children eat apart," explained Irene. "You will see it after the meal."  
"It's not a bad idea, you know. Toby needs to spend more time with children his age."

Her father looked worried and tired. For this reason alone, Sarah did not begin a scandal. She was terribly annoyed at being deprived of Toby for a few more hours on the pretext of a dinner she did not want to attend. They all knew that she had only come for her brother.

When they had been served with drinks, Sarah agreed to answer their questions. She explained to them her new subject of research and spoke about the books she had consulted in the morning. She described with love the long rows of books that stretched almost endlessly in the Oxford libraries. They listened to her, smiling indulgently. Their eyes, however, revealed that they did not understand her thirst for knowledge. When she went quiet, they had finished their drinks and left the living room to sit at the table in the hotel restaurant. This time it was Sarah who pretended to be interested in her father's affairs and the inept pastimes of her mother-in-law. They were all eager for the meal to end.

The dessert arrived without them having exchanged more than platitudes. Sarah's parents regularly glanced around, encouraging each other to speak without ever taking the risk. Finally, while Sarah was going to lose patience and ask what this was all about, her father frowned, looking behind her.

"What are they doing here? We said at nine o'clock. I have to join them. Darling?"

"I'll take care of everything here," Irene assured him. "Go ahead, we'll join you."

Sarah turned to look at her father, who went at the entrance of the hall to join three men in their suits. He greeted them with a smile and pats on the shoulder were exchanged. Sarah turned away from the scene, fulminating.

"Really ? You managed to stall me before a business meeting in your ministers' schedules?"

"Really Sarah, don't act like a kid! It was you who said you couldn't free your afternoon for us. Your father was so happy to see you, you know? He simply did not have the choice to meet his future partners now that the contract is signed. And then, we thought you could spend the rest of the evening with Toby."

Sarah reluctantly nodded and poured herself a glass of water to digest her anger before speaking again.

"I hope this evening will go well for dad then."

The contempt she felt for him and her mother-in-law was almost not heard. Irene nodded distractedly as she turned her glass of wine between her hands. She wantend to ask something to her but Sarah wasn't going to help her. Never create obligations where you can avoid them. That was another thing that the goblins world taught her.

"Do you have friends Sarah?"

The question was not one she expected.

"A few, yes," she lied with confidence."

"It's good. Do you see them often?"

"Every day at the university. A little less now that the holidays have started."

The lie seemed to satisfy Irene. Sarah concentrated, preparing herself for the following lies and half truths. It had been like that for almost ten years. To pretend that all was well, that she had not given her brother away for a few hours of silence. Smile. Lie. Never reveal herself, being herself only in front of her books.

"Toby has no friends," eventually confess Irene.

"At school?"

"And even in the neighborhood. That's why we took him with us. It was a long trip, but there was nobody close enough to accept him for a few days."

Sarah had asked herself the question and judge a little less severely her mother-in-law. This woman suddenly seemed very tired.

"He must still have comrades with whom he gets along," Sarah insisted. "I was a reserved child, but I had a few comrades with whom I felt well."

"He does not even have that. His teacher told me he spends his time alone in the yard. He does not even play with his comrades. I enrolled him in a music class this year. His teacher says he is quite talented, but he has not heard three words from him since the first day. Even at home, he never says anything. I was advised to see a psychiatrist. Sarah, you've always been good with him.

Maybe you could try to find what's wrong?"

"I can try."

Sarah was worried. She was also strangely affected by her mother-in-law cry for help. It was the first time they really spoke, from adult to adult. Irene pressed the keys of her room into Sarah's hand and squeezed it briefly. She was almost trembling with emotion.

"I must join your father," she finally said. "You should go get Toby and send him to bed quickly."  
"I'm taking care of everything."

Sarah didn't try to finish her dessert. Her stomach seemed to contract and try to swallow itself. She left the table just after her mother-in-law and left the restaurant without looking at her father. All her thoughts were fixed on Toby. At the reception, she was directed to a small room where a dozen children played loudly while waiting for their parents. Toby was the only one to stand aside. He had grown a lot since the last time Sarah had seen him, almost a year ago, she realized with shame. He must be seven now. At the same time, he looked tiny for his age. She smiled when she saw him holding Lancelot in his arms. This teddy bear was definitely the favourite companion to us both. Then, she realized that her brother was clinging to it as if he were terrified. She approached without him noticing. He stared at the ground, frowning.

"Hey, Toby!" She whispered softly so as not to surprise him. "I miss you, you know?"

He then looked up, blinked several times and finally made her a smile.

"Sarah," he said solemnly.

"How are you?"

He did not answer. Sarah did not worry too much. She knew her little brother. He hated people. As a child, he screamed until he was allowed to go into hiding in his room when his parents invited people. Sarah took her hand to encourage him to get up, but he refused, clinging more fiercely to Lancelot. To drag him to their room, Sarah almost had to tear one of his hands from the bear body to grab it. Then he nearly threw himself on the ground in protest. He refused to move. Finally, Sarah had no choice but to take him in her arms and carry him to the elevator. He was heavy and made no effort to spread his weight better. In the elevator several people threw scornful looks at Sarah, reproaching her for giving in to the whims of such a big child. She ignored them ostensibly.

 

Once on the right floor, she wanted to put Toby on the ground, but this time he clung to her with all his strength, forcing her to a strange gymnastics to open the door of their room and close it. It was obviously his parents' room, but a door led to a second small room with a child bed. Toys were everywhere on the floor and Sarah almost impaled on the spear of a small wooden soldier when she went press the switch. When it was done, she dropped than she put Toby on his bed, exasperated. He went to sit cross-legged at the other end of the bed, Lancelot still pressed against his heart. He stared at the floor and didn't stop, even as Sarah crouched by his side, all anger gone.

"What is the problem, Toby?"

Her question remained unanswered. Sarah sighed and sat next to her brother on the bed. She had to think and stop panicking. While gently stroking Toby's hair, she could not help but think that she should have seen that he was not well. She had been living in England for three years, and she saw him barely three to four weeks a year. She had always noticed that he was a reserved child, more than she was at the same age. Before the fateful night, Sarah had been a child then a young girl quite playful and open. When he was left to himself, Toby stayed in his corner with his two or three favourite toys. If Sarah was there, he was playing with her, but only if she took the initiative. He preferred to sit near her and listen to her stories.

"Is everything going well at school? At home? You want to tell me something?"

Sarah insisted but Toby stayed silent. Usually, he spoke to her. Every summer when she came home, he had adorable stories to tell her, stories of birds and butterflies he told by whispering and stumbling over his words while drawing on the floor. This silence was totally new to Sarah.  
She could not help thinking that she was partly responsible. Since that night, she had always looked after her little brother the best she could, it was true. After that night, Toby stopped crying as soon as she hugged him, much to the chagrin of her mother-in-law, who did not understand how she could do it. Sarah had become his favourite and she was totally attached to him in return. Yet, she had abandoned him a second time. Every summer, she had told herself that, in spite of his shyness, everything would be fine for him and that to talk to him twice a week would be enough to show him all her love.

Perhaps she had been wrong to want to become an adult and overcome the fear that had gripped her that day. But it had seemed so reasonable to take her independence and move away. Toby needed to grow up surrounded by affection, but not to feel overwhelmed by his big sister. After all, when she had left the house, just after Toby's fourth birthday, he looked relieved that he did not have to endure the long hugs she gave him to reassure herself. She didn't know if she had hurt him more by leaving than by staying. Maybe it was her sense of guilt that spoke.

"Did I hurt you?" She asked and Toby turned his head slightly in her direction. "I hurt you a lot when you were little you know? I hated you. But I knew I was wrong and I love you, so please tell me what's wrong."

He did not answer but handed her Lancelot. Their eyes met for a moment before he fixed the ground again. Sarah sighed and took the old stuffed toy.

"Maybe what you need is just a good night's sleep. Jet lag is a plague."

It was not easy to prepare Toby for bedtime. He must have been exhausted because, in spite of his almost ten years, Toby was not able to put on his pyjamas alone and stormed as soon as Sarah tried to put Lancelot aside to help him. She finally managed to do it and joined him under the blanket to whisper the story of Ludo, the kind monster who helped children who did not speak. Toby fell asleep along the way. Sarah kissed him softly and suddenly realized it was the first time she had mentioned the Goblin world in front of her little brother. Until then, she had taken great care to invent stories that had nothing to do with her own adventure.

Once she was sure that he had fallen asleep, Sarah got up and pulled a flashlight from her backpack and a book. Then she turned off the light. However, she couldn't concentrate, the words seemed to dance on the page. She finally gave up and closed her eyes.

Sleep was long to come.

 


	2. A strange feeling

**Chapter 2 : A strange feeling**

 

The morning came and the noise in the next room woke Sarah up. Grudgingly, she got up, changed her clothes and picked up her things. When she was ready, she opened the door between the two rooms. Her father and mother-in-law just finished dressing.

"Ah! Sarah!" she exclaimed seeing her, then whispered so Toby could sleep a bit longer. "Did you talk to Toby?"

"I tried but in vain," said Sarah. "He said nothing and I never saw him react like that."

Irene's shoulders drooped and her father's eyes darkened.

"So his doctor may be right. He's mentally retarded."

Two terrifying words that Sarah had never considered. Her little brother was clever, not simple-minded like ... most goblins. Sarah was suddenly ashamed of her thoughts and angry with herself. Toby had nothing to do with these creatures. And even if he did, he was Sarah's brother. She wouldn't love him less.

"We will take him to see a specialist when we come back to America," sighed Irene. "I hoped that a change of air would do him good but it looks like this unknown hotel had the opposite effect."  
"Maybe I could stay for the day," Sarah proposed.

She had other plans for the day but Toby was more important.

"You don't have to. Your father's new client invited us to discover the English countryside. Toby is like you, nature has always calmed him. This trip will be good for him and if not, I promise to keep you informed. Maybe we could make a jump to Oxford tomorrow? We would love to see why you talk so much about this city."

Sarah gave up, too easily perhaps. In any case, she was not sure what she could do for poor Toby in the state she was in. What she needed was to be alone and think for a while, after emptying her head of worry and guilt.

A little ashamed and hesitant despite everything, she picked up her backpack.

"Call me tonight, okay? And even after your return home, if you have news, or even if you just need to talk."

Clumsily, Irene hugged her for a few seconds. Her father then went forward to do the same. When he let go, Sarah felt a hand grip her pants. Toby stared at the curtains behind her while giving her Lancelot with an imperative gesture.

"Toby, I can not take you Lancelot, it's your favourite toy. You do not even know when you'll see him again."

Her little brother handed it to her more vehemently. Overcome, Sarah reopened her bag to put Lancelot in between her books and her clothes from the night before. She tried to kiss Toby but he squirmed to escape her embrace. Sarah had to give up and contented herself with a brief kiss on his forehead. She said goodbye again to her father and mother-in-law for the last time, then left. The door slammed. Sarah hated that sound. It was like something was closing forever.

 

-.-.-.-.-.-

 

Sarah went back to Oxford. Discomfort and distress followed her steps. This time it had nothing to do with any presence attached to her. As soon as she got off the train, she went to the library. Even among the precious centenarian volumes, she loved to read, doubt kept her from concentrating. Twenty times she thought of giving up her research to take a train back to London. Guilt alone stopped her. The feeling that everything was her fault was growing in her stomach. She had snatched Toby from the goblin king, but for the first time in a long time, she wondered if she had brought him back intact. The day after her struggle with the labyrinth and its master, Sarah had examined her brother from all angles to be certain that he had not begun to turn into a goblin as the king had threatened. But no, his skin was still pink and his eyes were blue so Sarah was reassured. If not, she would have found a way back into the Underworld, as she had named it, and made Toby's torturer pay for it. That day, she cried, hugging Toby tightly, probably too much, but he did not cry in protest. It was the only time she had allowed herself to cry about this adventure.  
If Toby was unwell today, it might be her fault. Yes, Toby may have always been different. There should be thousands of strange children around the world and Sarah was willing to bet that most had never looked up to a different sky than that of the Earth. Sarah could not go back to London any more than she could have stayed at home if she had failed to bring Toby back. She wouldn't dare to meet the eyes of her family without being sure of the truth.

As she struggled to focus on a sentence she had already read ten times, Sarah realized that she could discover the answer here. She was in one of the greatest sources of knowledge about folklore. She could investigate. Looking up at the wall clock, Sarah realized that her epiphany came a little late. The library was soon going to close, and she was wasting her time pitying herself and trying to work on a thesis that had lost all importance in just a day. She should just accept this setback and return the next day to get serious work. Of the thousands of works on folklore, there must have been some that were relevant to Toby's case. And before that, she had her own books that she could consult at home.

She collected her notes of the day, then deposited the books she had scarcely consulted on the librarian's cart which was passing to remind the latecomers of the closing time. It was a young man she vaguely knew and who did not hide that he was very interested with her. Usually, Sarah pretended she hadn't noticed his advances.

"Good work today?," he asked in the clear hope of bringing the discussion to the topic that interested him.

"Quite good, but I'm falling behind," she lied, with a smile that could pass to sincere. "My teacher requires quick answers for an article he is working on and I'm drowning in my research."

"I can imagine," he grimaced with a look of compassion. "If I can help you...."

"It's very nice," Sarah smiled before frowning as if she suddenly had an idea. "Tell me, do you work tomorrow? If I arrive at eleven o'clock, could you put aside all that there is about changelings and kidnappings in European folklore?"

He winced slightly. Sarah wanted to laugh in his face, amused to see him fight between his attraction toward her and his desire not to double his work.

"It looks light a lot of work if you have no title to give me and I have archiving to do," he ends up saying. "What do I get in exchange?"

"I would be very grateful to you," promised Sarah, with a large smile.

This one looked more sincere than Sarah believed or the librarian was particularly gullible because he blushed and accepted with enthusiasm. Sarah had promised nothing. She had learned never to promise anything. A word bound you far too much. With one last smile, as false as the previous ones, Sarah wished the young man a good evening, picked up her notes and left the library.

 

Exhausted, she went on the first bus to her neighbourhood and struggled not to fall asleep against the window. After that, she went to her street, eyes fixed on the ground. It took her three try to open the lock and close the door. Finally, she began to climb the stairs when her landlady came out of her living room.

-Miss William, you received a call two or three hours ago. The same number as the last time.  
Weariness forgotten, Sarah rushed to the phone, barely taking the time to thank her landlady. The anxiety was nearly unbearable. This time, she was quickly transferred when she gave her parent's room number.

"Sarah, is it you?" asked her stepmother. "It's been two days since we've been trying to call you!"

Even though Irene had raised exaggeration to an art form, she must have been exhausted to make this kind of confusion. Sarah has promised herself to be indulgent. It must be difficult taking care of Toby when Irene was stressed from worry, especially if he had behaved all day as he had the night before.

"I told you I'd come back late today," she reminded her.

"Maybe. I forgot what you told I suppose. You're probably wondering why I call you.

"Not really. How is..."

"Your father and I are in England for two more days," her stepmother interrupted. We are on an unforeseen business trip. A colleague of your father had to withdraw. Your father has replaced him unexpectedly and is about to sign a big deal. The client invited us to visit the English countryside today, it was great. We're in London for two days more days, you have to come tomorrow. We could go shopping together and eat at the hotel. Your father miss you so much!  
"What are you talking about? We had this conversation two days ago! Hand me my father."  
There was silence, long enough for Sarah to start panicking, then she heard her father pick up the phone.

"Really, Sarah, what made you scream at Irene? I thought you had passed this kind of childishness."

Her father's voice should have been more reassuring to Sarah and the familiar reproaches suddenly seemed unbearable to her.

"I don't have time to lose with her. What is going on? How is Toby?"

"Who?"  
Suddenly, Sarah was thrust into her worst nightmare. She recalled the voice of the Goblin King. This was what he had promised her, before she entered the labyrinth and beat him at his own game. If she had abandoned Toby to him, no one would have remembered him. She collapsed along the wall, breathless. It could not be true.

"Do you know who Toby is?" She managed to ask, articulating each syllable.

"The name doesn't ring a bell. One of your friends at home?"

"It doesn't matter. Can you tell me what you did today with Irene?"

Sarah had gone beyond panic and despair. She couldn't even cry or scream her anger. Only one thought kept her sane, the certainty that she was the only one to have an idea of what was going on, the only one who could help Toby. She could not break.

"My client offered to let us discover the country before signing the contract tomorrow. If you had answered yesterday, you could have come with us. I'm sure you would have loved it."

Sarah preferred to ignore the accusation she heard in his voice.

"Where did you go exactly?"

"In Windsor Castle first, then Stonehenge, an old hill named Silbury and a stone circle at Avebury. A busy day, as you can see. My client loves old stones and archaeology."

Sarah had visited Stonehenge, of course, shortly after arriving in England, but had never visited the other sites. The great stone circle had made her too uncomfortable to repeat the experience.  
"Have you touched something on these old sites? A stone, an object, anything old, carved or engraved?"  
"Why such a question?"

"We had a seminar on it last month," Sarah improvised. "Those are old, abandoned places, and there are sometimes old microbes lying around. It's better not to touch anything."

The legends about humans being trained in another world after touching something magical were very present in Sarah's mind.

"I did not touch anything and Irene either. Do you think we are could have catch something?"  
Sarah took pity of her father. She was terrified, but that was not a reason to scare him back.  
"Well, it's a sort of popular theory right now, but nothing more. It could explain the cursed reputations of certain sites, the folklore. Some legends also say that it is better not to pronounce certain words and especially not to make promises and wishes in this kind of place. You have made no wish, I hope."

"That's nonsense."

"All the same, better be careful. Legends come from somewhere"

"Irene and I are too rational to make such hollow wishes."

"I imagine that if you were that kind of people, Irene would have wished twenty times that the goblins came to take me."

"Do not joke with this Sarah. You know how important family is to her."

Sarah was only half reassured. She had said the words. It wasn't hard to imagine her step-mother trying to calm Toby and wishing the goblins to take him if he kept behaving like a baby. Irene loved her family, perhaps, but had no patience for childishness. Yes, they could very well have done it and forgotten it. If that was the case, Sarah had no way of discovering it by talking to them.

"I know. I'm tired dad, can I call you back tomorrow? I'll let you know if I can free myself and come see you."

"Good night Sarah. I love you."

Sarah managed to say goodbye before hanging up. Despite her shaky legs, she went get back to her room, mainly because she didn't want to crumble in tears where she could be seen.

 

Once in safety in her room, she nearly tore her bag in her haste to find Lancelot. She hugged him tightly, wishing she had never agreed to take him back from Toby. Maybe he could have protected her little brother. All this was her fault, it must be. She just had to find out how and why to correct her mistake. She had no right to cry before bringing Toby back.

Without taking her hands off Lancelot, Sarah frantically searched her books for an answer. She was not ready. She didn't know enough. All these books contradicted each other and their authors had no idea of the reality of their subject of study. Sarah had left everything to study and be ready to fight if the Goblin King came to attack Toby again. All this for nothing. Enraged, she threw a book across the room and stopped herself from screaming.

She calmed down eventually and began to think a little more rationally. To submit to her inclinations for drama served nothing. In fact, she was better prepared than ever, even though it was still not enough. Everything she had ever learned could be useful, and her determination would be a better ally than her memory anyway.

And after all, she still had three allies to rely on, her oldest and most dedicated friends. She still did not know why she had not seen them for nearly five years, but she was sure they would respond to her distress and would keep their promise. She would do the same if they needed her.

"Hoggle. Ludo. Sir Didymus. I need you."

Nothing happened. Refusing to panic, Sarah remembered that in her teenage room, she was always facing her mirror when calling them. She ran to the bathroom and repeated her call.

In vain.

So far, Sarah had endured their absence by clinging to the idea that they had to look after her one way or another. If she did not see them anymore, maybe it was because she was an adult. From now on, she doubted it. More and more worried, she returned to her room and opened the window. The bowl of milk she had placed on the edge of it before leaving the day before was still there. However, for the first time since she had taken this habit, the bowl was still full. The milk had begun to curdle. Sarah cried in horror and frantically looked around for traces of her friends on the balconies and nearby roofs. When her eyes came to rest on the stone portal in front of her house, she nearly had a heart attack. The stone owl was gone. Another one, very much alive, had taken its place. This one had white, the feathers on its head and its wings spotted with brown.

"No!"  
Without meaning it, Sarah had cried in despair. She had been heard, as the animal spread its wings and flew straight to her. Sarah hastily closed the window to stop it. Her gesture was useless. The window shattered, fragments of glass flying in all directions. Sarah covered her face with her hands to avoid being hurt and felt glass splinters scratching her forearms. When she looked again, the owl had disappeared, replaced by the Goblin King.

 


	3. A King outside his domain

He was exactly like in her memories but also so much less and so much more. Less, because he no longer inspired her a feeling of abject terror. Sarah had beaten him once, that meant she could do it again. And more, because Sarah was an adult now and she could see the magnetic charm he was exuding. She never noticed it, before. The young woman had always known that she was the Goblin's King prey. Sarah remembered what he asked of her and what he offered in return. Despite this, she had been too innocent and frightened to really understand what he wanted from her. Had she realized she might not have dared to take one more step in the Labyrinth. Even today, he had the gaze and posture of a predator. The rags cloth he wore over a half-open shirt made him look even more dangerous.

He smiled at her, and she shuddered. His smile widened further. He made a curtsey and offered her his hand with and indolent gesture.

"What audacity, Sarah, to invite me to your house."

"I did not invite you," said Sarah, walking away.

She was afraid of touching him. Her heart was pounding, but he merely raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Really? You think you can teach me the rules of my kingdom?"

"You are not in your kingdom here, and I would never invite you anywhere on purpose."

"For your information, Sarah," he retorted in an ever-affable tone, "know that a sovereign always takes a little of his kingdom with him and that he is at home everywhere. This is our privilege."

"I prefer an elected leader."

He burst out laughing.

"Yes, it's one of your recent fads, is not it? It will not last. Your race likes to be dominated and subjugated. Well, are not you happy to see me?"

"I would rather know what you are doing here. Are you spying on me?"

The Goblin King had a great time and laughed again for a very long time. When he did stop, he took a moment to look at the room and raised a scornful eyebrow at the narrowness of the room and the minimalist decor Sarah was now fond of. After all, she had understood in his kingdom the danger of attaching yourself to memories and trinkets.

He stepped forward, and Sarah stepped back to stay out of reach. He ended up sitting on the desk as if it were a throne, carelessly sweeping Sarah's work and cavalierly put a foot on the bed. With his other boot, he gingerly lifted the quilt, sending a suggestive look in Sarah's direction. She looked away, her cheeks burning.

"Are you really surprised that I'm watching you?" He finally asked. "Do you know how many have defeated my Labyrinth? You alone."

"How long?"

"Since I came into his possession and even before. It never happened in goblin, fay or stone memory."  
Sarah had never been proud of what she had done that night. However, to know that she was the first to teach him something was most satisfactory. Like the girl she had been, she wanted to say that it had been a piece of cake. Of course, they both would know that she was lying and that she had never faced an enemy as implacable as the Labyrinth and its master. The only thing that was as tricky was to look Toby in the eyes the next day and every day since. But she did not dare to brave him, and Sarah remained silent. She had seen the consequences of his anger too many times.

"So, you watch me. I suspected it to be true. But still, I would like to know what you are doing here right now."

"Is it not obvious? I'm looking for three traitors, and I heard you call them. Where are they?"

"I do not know."

Again, he burst out laughing, but it was now a threatening sound. He moved his hand, and a cane appeared. He used it to lift the curtain and check that no one was hiding behind.

"As if these three could resist your call. If you were a flame, those insects would die under your touch crying with joy. Tell them to come. I will not tolerate them hiding. If they tremble with fear enough to my taste, if they crawl at my feet and tell me how they escaped, I might show them mercy."  
"Escaped !," she cried. "So you imprisoned them, monster? I knew there must have been a reason I didn't see them anymore."

"Be careful with your words, Sarah. I have never let anyone insult me more than once, and it's already the second time you've offended me. The third will mean death for you."

His posture was still nonchalant, but his eyes were as cold as ice, and his cane darted to Sarah's throat like a sword. She did not care. Her fear was gone now, replaced by a fury she did not want to control.

"Threats! That's all you can do, is it, threaten and destroy lives? My friends are not there, and if I knew you had imprisoned them, I would have come back and freed them."

The Goblins king jumped to his feet.

"Be careful, Sarah. You go too far."

"And you, did not you go too far when you kidnapped my brother again?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do not pretend to be surprised. Toby is gone. My father and mother do not even remember his existence."

The Goblin King waved his hand and Sarah found herself unable to say another word. Shoving his hand through his hair, Jareth paced the room. Below the window, he retrieved the bowl of milk, fallen during his intrusion and ran his finger over its entire surface. He began to look his finger under every angle and smelled it. He did the same with the window and door jamb.

"How long have you put milk on your window?" He asked, waving his hand again.

"Since the beginning," replied Sarah, relieved to have found her voice. They loved the attention.  
"Yes, it's a weakness of the Goblins," he admitted with contempt. "I'm sure they feasted, the first year. But since their imprisonment, others have become accustomed to finishing off their plate. Goblins and fairies who are not mine by the smell."

"Not yours? But then..."

He silenced her again with a gesture.

"Can you please show some judgment for five minutes? Did you really think that your little adventure had gone unnoticed? All the kingdoms have talk of nothing but this for the last six years. There even were a song or two. You are watched and spied on, and not only by me. You should be thankful: I have scared off the most obsessive of your admirers long ago."

It may be the truth, but Sarah did not doubt that she had felt Jareth's presence more than once in recent years, and it was so haunting that it scared those around her. He had frightened some people she did not want in her life but only to keep her to himself. She saw very well what the Goblin king was doing. He tried to flatter her ego or stir up her anger to keep control of the situation. She was not going to let him.

"You insinuate that it's my fault. That I drew those other goblins here and that it's my fault that Toby has disappeared."

She hadn't taken the bait, but he rushed to the one she was holding out for him. He knew she might be quick to anger, but she could stir up his urge to feel superior, to prove to her that she was the ignorant one. She could take advantage of this to learn something.

"They would have watched you even without that."

"What do I have that is so interesting?"

"You? Nothing. You are insignificant. Their target his me."

Sarah's ego could have been crushed if she had not expected something like that to come out of his mouth. But Jareth's ego was a bit excessive. She was going to protest, but he raised his hand to stop her.

"This does not concern you anymore. Go back to your pathetic little life."

He began to look at the window's edge with some kind of curiosity. Sarah glanced at him. Her brother had disappeared, and he thought she could give up? His inhumanity had never been so obvious. She said nothing and retrieved her bag, which she had left on the ground without bothering to empty it when she came home. She took out her change of clothes to replace it with a metal box filled with biscuits, a bottle of water, a few books and Lancelot. After a moment of reflexion, she opened a drawer of her dresser, pulled out a box and added it to the bag before closing it. Finally ready, she walked with a firm step towards the door. The Goblin King, who kept an eye on her while checking the dust on the floor, apostrophized her.

"I think I gave you an order, Sarah."

"And I think I'm not one of your subjects," said Sarah as she opened the door. "I don't have to take orders from you. I'm going to get Toby back."

The door handle escaped her hands. It closed, and the key turned itself in the lock. Outraged, Sarah turned around. The Goblin King had moved silently and stood right behind her.

"You are not reasonable, Sarah", he whispered while putting a hand on her.

"Not when it comes to my brother," she said, freeing her hand from his grip. "I have an idea of where he disappeared, and you will not stop me from going there."

"And then? How do you plan to leave your world? Do you know how to enter the Underground? Where will you look for your brother? You have no idea what you are doing."

"And you do?"

Sarah had asked the question without thinking, but she realized it was the only one that really mattered. Jareth said that Toby's kidnapping was an attack against him even if he discovered it a few moments ago. He spied on her and wasn't surprised that others did. Even more, Toby's disappearance has surprised him only for a few seconds. It could only mean one thing: he was expecting something of that sort. So, he had an interest in all of this. And if he really were targeted, his pride alone would drive him to act. On the other hand, it was clear that he wanted her to stay where she was. Sarah smiled. To her satisfaction, this time, he shivered for half a second. He was the one affected.

"You were not going to just sit by. You have to get Toby back."

"Do not be ridiculous. What would I care about a human child's fate?"

"Nothing, but he's my brother, and I care. I don't know a thing about the politics of your kingdoms, but I know I'm right. Someone wants to insult you, isn't it? So you have to act."

"And that's what I'll do if you stay in your place. They want you to come. Then they'll capture you and prove they are better than me to captivate a human."

He used that word, captivate, as if it were synonymous with capturing. Or even worse. For his kinds, perhaps it was one. Sarah's smile widened as she challenged the Goblin king.

"And they will succeed you can't keep me here. Close the doors, block the windows, I will start a fire to escape, or my friends will finally hear my call and free me."

He made a threatening gesture towards her.

"I could also lock you in the centre of my kingdom."

"No, you can't," she denied confidently. "There are rules. I defeated your Labyrinth, just and fair. You can't take me there again. Otherwise, you would have done it already to punish me for my victory. No, you'll have to go knowing that I'll escape and that if I get caught, your humiliation will be second to none."

Jareth gave her a long, angry, calculating look. Sarah refused to look away and watched him weigh his chances. Finally, his gaze softened and become a caress. To Sarah, it was worse than the threatening.

"You're smarter than I expected you to become all these years ago," he admitted, simulating boredom.  
Sarah did not take the bait and continued to attack.

"There is another solution, though. I could accompany you."

The Goblin King's eyes gleamed with an unpleasant eagerness. He took a step toward her and was now so close that Sarah's pulse quickened. He leaned over as if to kiss her but changed his mind at the last second, much to Sarah's relief. She wouldn't have stopped him. She needed him too much. The fact that his perfume and his eyes' magnetism frightened her was a trivial thing.

"It would be just as humiliating," Jareth thought aloud. "The master of the Labyrinth and the city of Goblins accompanied by a girl? I can already hear the laughs. But ... You could beg me to be your guide for your quest."

"Would you do it?"

"Beg me."

His smile widened as he sat down in the chair as if it were a throne. Sarah tried to calculate him. That was her suggestion, but she wanted to be sure she could trust him. He did not take Toby away, but that did not mean he was not responsible for his situation, and Sarah still hated him. She did not really have a choice, though. The mere idea of venturing alone into the Underworld made her froze. Swallowing all that remained of her pride, Sarah knelt down.

"Oh Goblin's King, master of the Labyrinth, would you do me a favor to serve as my guide and to help me in my quest to find my brother and bring him safely to his parents? I can't do it alone."  
Flattery visibly pleased Jareth, who applauded three times, then reached out to grab a strand of Sarah's hair and caress her head.

"I could do it, but what would you give me in return for that favour? What are you willing to give in exchange for your brother?"

"Almost everything, you know it," Sarah acknowledged.

"And if that's what I want?"

His voice was hoarse, and he shivered in anticipation as he leaned toward her. Sarah looked at him for a moment longer, then gave up.

"I will give you everything you ask if I can put two conditions."

"So, after the rescue of your brother, you will accompany me in my domain where you will reside until the end of your days?"

"Yes," Sarah agreed firmly, trying to ignore the need to puke. As long as I have my own apartments and my own servants that I would choose. And you'll swear that you'll continue to protect Toby and his parents every time this kind of threat happens again."

He burst out laughing, stood up to curtsy and applauded again.

"Well, Sarah! You're becoming quite good at this game. I will be your guide, and I accept your conditions."

He offered her a hand, and she gave her, accepting his help to get up. While giving her a caressing glance, he kissed her hand. Sarah fight to not cry. He did not come to get that from her, but both knew he had won. His revenge was complete now that Sarah had sworn to belong to him. However, if Toby were found safe and sound, Sarah would consider herself the winner.

"Will we go now?" She managed to ask bravely.

He raised an inquiring eyebrow.

"Where?"  
"Silbury Hill, Avebury, Stonehenge," she said on her fingers. "He was there with my parents. That's where he disappeared, I guess."

"Interesting theory, which restricts the scope of possibilities. But we have another stop to make first. Take my hand and do not be afraid."

Sarah was and could not open her mouth to pretend otherwise. He held out a hand in which was placed a crystal ball. Sarah shivered involuntarily. She had too many bad memories related to those things. However, it was too late to backtrack, and she was almost sure to have found the right words to be sure of Jareth's cooperation. A sudden thought made her want to laugh. She said she wanted to study the power of words in Western folklore. Not loving the half-measures, she went straight to a practical study. Reinvigorated by that idea, she reached out and touched the sphere.

 

Everything blurred around her and Sarah thought she heard a strange noise, like many wings far away, just for a second before she felt hundreds of feathers swirling around her. Finally, everything stopped, and Sarah opened her eyes, her legs shaking, to discover herself in her parents' hotel room. To her relief, they were not there. She couldn't begin to imagine how to explain them her unexpected arrival or the presence of a man all dressed in black and purple leather. Of course, without Toby, they must be busy savouring the London nightlife. She tried not to blame them. It was not their fault that Toby had disappeared, or not only. It was mostly her's.

The young woman sat down to try to keep her nausea at bay. It was caused by her strange displacement, but not only. So far, she had always seen Jareth as her implacable enemy. She was not sure how much she could trust him. And then, the use of magic, even to her benefit for once, left her uneasy. She did not want to rely on the one thing which took Toby away. Twice. Maybe she did not have a choice, but it did not make the situation easier to accept.

While she tried to collect herself, her companion searched the two rooms, turning them upside down and ran his finger across all surfaces. He came back to her, thoughtful.

"It seems you were right, as unlikely as it sounds, he did not disappear here. However, his captors have left some traces, and this limits the possibilities. Are you sure of the places your family went?"  
Sarah nodded silently. She was still worried about Toby, but now she felt some sort of academic excitement.

"So it's true, what the folklore says? These places are gateways to the fairy world? But you didn't need one to take Toby."

The King of Goblins dismissed the argument with a hand gesture. He was so indifferent Sarah wanted to scream.

"Humans cannot always be wrong, and your ancestors were often less stupid than you are these days. If we are not invited, as you did when you urged me to take your brother, we have to take byways. Ancient sites are not an obligation, but we have always loved traditions. Stonehenge has not been used for a long time, except by the populace. The place is too busy. Avebury and Silbury have their regulars users, though."

He reached out for her hand. Sarah sat up and grabbed it reluctantly now that she knew what to expect. The travel was a difficult moment, and when she opened her eyes, she found herself in the middle of a field surrounded by a series of standing stones. A road crossed it, and some houses stood in the middle. Gray and brown owl feathers fell around them. Sarah immediately let go of Jareth's hand and walked away from him. The Goblin King sniffed the atmosphere and smiled.

"There has been a recent passage," he commented with delight. "We are in the right place."

"How do you know?"

Sarah reluctantly accepted the gallant hand and let him guide her to one of the larger stones. Jareth put a gloved finger on it before handing it to Sarah for inspection. It was covered with glittering dust.

"They have not been careful enough in covering their tracks, which tends to prove that they want to be followed, by you or by me. And a frightened human child leaves a particularly easy-to-spot smell. Your brother was standing there when he was captivated. Of course, since then, they'll have arranged for him to be no longer afraid and we will not be able to track him once we cross the door."

Sarah was horrified, and she couldn't stop looking at him. With his royal manners, he almost make her forget that he was a monster. He talked about kidnapping children as if it was a common thing to do and the idea that Toby's fear could be tracked? She was petrified.

Finally, she turned her attention to the stone so she would not have to look at her companion. For the first time this evening, Sarah really realized that she was going to venture into the Underworld again. She thought back to her first time there. The walls closing behind her,the hands grabbing her to rush her into a dungeon, the traps and armies waiting for her at every corner. She shivered. The Goblin King released her arm, only to put his hand on her shoulder.

"Are you scared, Sarah?", he whispered in her neck.

"No."  
"Yes, you are" he laughed. "All the better, otherwise I would not give much of your chances of success."

He embraced her, pressing his chest against Sarah's back. She wanted to protest, to escape, but he held her firmly, and the world shifted. The stones were still there, but the sky above them was bright red. The field was now a hill that floated above a misty swamp. The village and the road were gone. Wherever she looks, Sarah saw only water and lanky trees. With a violent wave of her shoulder, Sarah freed herself and turned to stare furiously at the Goblin King.  
"My chances of success? Should not you say our chances? I thought you were there to help me, you promised me."

"Of course, and I will do it, Sarah, but there are rules to follow. Last time, did your companions do everything for you?"

Sarah pondered her answer.

"They helped me yes, but not the same way. Hoggle was my guide and advised me. Ludo and Sir Didymus fought for me."

Those two fought, yes, but neither of them had guided or advised her, even though they were as familiar with the Labyrinth as was Hoggle. They helped her with the stones magic and the spear. And Hoggle? He had never fought for her. Sarah realized that everything in the Underworld was governed by rules. It was not the chaos she'd thought she'd face in the past. If she could grasp the logic of these rules, she would have already half won.

"I can guide you," said Jareth, "or advise or fight for you, but I can only do one of the three. The choice is yours."

The first solution was stupid. It was not his kingdom and, even if Jareth knew the way Toby and his kidnappers went, no doubt that this land's master would find a way to make them lose their direction. She had no idea if he was a capable warrior. She wouldn't say it out loud, but she thought he was a coward, hiding behind his walls and his goblins. Besides, it was her duty to fight for Toby. The man who had kidnapped her brother once could not sincerely fight for him. But he could guide or assist her in her fight.

"Your advice will be useful to me."

He bowed with reverence. Sarah looked around them, looking for something that would tell her where to go. It was in vain, all the trees looked alike, and the fog grew stronger. She had to make a decision though, so she decided to move on to what seemed to be the south. She glanced at Jareth, but his face was blank, and he did not reveal what he thought of her decision.

 


	4. Beyond the stone

**Chapter 4 : Beyond the stones**

 

Sarah and Jareth walked in silence for a long time, wading in the swamp's mud. They were moving slowly, mostly because Sarah had to regularly avoid the roots under her feet. She could have sworn they were trying to make her stumble, and it became a certainty when she felt one of them wrap around her ankle and pull her back viciously.

Sarah would have fallen into the water if Jareth had not held her. He even let her lean on him as she struggled to free herself from the root. She gave him a silent thank you while she was regaining her breath.

"I'd prefer my companion to remains presentable. Mud in the hair is good for goblins, not for humans girls."

"You were a lot less helpful last time," Sarah retorted. "What happened, did you grow a heart?"  
The face of the Goblin King darkened. He let go of her and Sarah almost lost her balance. She knew she should not have provoked him. She needed him too much right now.

"The last time, you wanted me to be your enemy, Sarah. You wanted me to be the villain of your lovely little story where you were the heroine who fearlessly faced the terrible Goblin King to free your brother. So yes, I was the villain because you refused to acknowledge that you were the bad guy. Didn't I made a good culprit?"

These words sounded like a slap to Sarah, especially since she had often secretly thought that. She clenched her teeth to contain her scream, ignored her guide and continued to walk. She would not give him the satisfaction of showing that he had hurt her. Behind her, Jareth laughed softly and followed her. Sarah made a point of not speaking to him or even look at him as she continued to move forward with determination. But the walk quickly became exhausting and, more than once, she reluctantly accepted his hand to stabilize herself.

Out of breath, her legs aching, she finally let herself fall down against a dead tree and grabbed her bottle of water in her bag. It was divinely refreshing in her mouth, but she dared not drink more than a few sips. She had to save it. Everyone knew you did not drink water or eat food from the Underworld. When she had recovered a little, Sarah looked around her. The swamp did not seem to end. It was just water and dead trees all around her. She looked back and almost cried when she realized that the island she had left for an hour at least was about thirty paces behind her.

"It's not fair, is it?"

The Goblin King did not try to hide his amusement. Sarah put back her bag on her shoulders and straightened up, but did not try to walk away. It was obviously useless. It was not the good way to get closer to her brother.

"Of course it's not fair. Your kind is never fair, are they?"

"It's against all our principles," he whispered in her ear like it was a secret.

"Because you have some?" asked Sarah.

She refused to show him the effect he has on her with his whispers.

"Some. You should ask."

"What are your principles? Never. I would be too afraid of the answer."

"I am your guide, Sarah. But I cannot help you if you do not ask me questions."

He looked almost as frustrated as she was, so Sarah stopped herself from retorting sharply. Besides, he was right. Again. If she had to endure his company, she should make use of him. She had dozens of questions to ask him, about this world, the labyrinth, Toby and herself. She just asked the two most urgent ones.

"The last time you gave me a time limit to find Toby. Is this the case this time too, and then, how am I supposed to know the delay? And how the hell do we get out of this swamp? There is nothing and nobody there."

"What question do you want me to answer?"

Sarah had not expected this answer, which was not helpful at all, and glared at him before realizing he was absolutely serious. He could not answer them both because it was not permitted. His role as a guide was going to be even more limited than she thought.

"The first one."

"Your time is short, of course, but I've got good news for you. I know how we kings and queens of the Underworld act. To add insult to insult, I'm sure they'll have left you more time than I had to prove their superiority over me. After all, sovereigns like to ridicule their rivals. Still, they can shorten the time if you insult them enough. I know it will be hard for you, but try not to antagonize them. You will have clues anyway."

These words awakened a memory buried in Sarah's mind. A ballroom where she danced. A clock that had reminded her of the moment and made it possible to escape the trap in time.

"Of course," she murmured. "You're required to leave clues. This is not arrogance, you have to do so to balance the chances just a little bit. This allows you to reinforce the idea that we can succeed, but it's just an illusion, is it? You respect some principles and violate all others."

Jareth's sparkling eyes and half-smile confirmed her suspicions. And then, she realized Jareth's information applied to more than her deadline. Sarah looked more closely at the swamp. The trees, she realized, were all exactly the same, a thick trunk with three big main branches rising from a hollow at the top. She had not noticed it, too busy watching for the dangerous roots.

"The oubliettes have doors hidden inside," she murmured. "Crystal balls can be broken to escape. I wandered in an infinite straight line through your labyrinth before I find the real entrance. We are in a vestibule."

Suddenly feeling better, Sarah grabbed a branch to climb the closest tree. If there was a passage, it was in the ridge or between the roots, under the water. She hoped it was the first. Relieved, she found a hatch in the hollow between the branches and lifted it. The interior was dark. She tried to stand up to signal Jareth she found the answer, but the hole suddenly widened, and she fell, screaming.

Fortunately, her long fall was stopped when she fell on a sort of spongy carpet formed of vines. Moments later, Jareth landed there with more grace than Sarah. He seemed to be having a blast. Sarah choose to ignore him to observe their surroundings. The position seemed very precarious, and it was better to abandon it as soon as possible. Vines sprang from this nest in all directions. Jareth could have given her some advice, but Sarah preferred to keep his help for more crucial questions.

She grabbed a vine that went down into the darkness and slid away just in time. The lianas of the nest were already assembled to form a mouth ready to devour it. In the centre of it, the Goblin king turned into an owl and began to fly to join her. Sarah took a deep breath and let herself slide.  
The fall was so long that the vine's contact put her hands in blood. Most of the time, she couldn't see anything around her, not even the vine she was holding. When the darkness receded, she saw a dark cave that became a narrow passage on which she injured her knees and shoulders. Finally, the narrow pass led to a corridor with stone walls. Sarah dropped on the floor. At the end of the corridor, there was a door, and it was slightly open. Above it, was a monumental clock which indicated not twelve or even thirteen hours on display, but twenty-seven. Jareth was right, and Sarah allowed herself to breathe normally again. She had time. But she was still worried, and she began to run to the door. Then she stopped dead in her tracks, struck by a sudden realization.

She was alone.

Worried, Sarah went back under the tunnel from which she had emerged, and she scanned the darkness. The liana was still there, but she heard nothing, not even a flutter of wings.

"Jareth?", she finally called.

A violent wind blew from the narrow passage, and she almost fell. This was her only answer.

Sarah did not linger to think about it. Jareth had abandoned her or had been separated from her, but she couldn't wait for him. Her only objective was Toby. Even more determined, Sarah pushed the door. If she was in the house of the kidnapper, she only had to explore it from top to bottom.  
  
Perhaps the house, or maybe the castle, wasn't a labyrinth. Still, it was just as confusing, Sarah decided when she collapsed, exhausted, under a crystal clock that announced that she had twenty-one hours to succeed. She had wandered for hours, and she wasn't further advanced. She had tried to draw a card on a paper she found at the bottom of her bag, but nothing made sense. Some windows showed the outside, a purple moor under two pale white suns. Sarah had turned three times to the right, but every time the two suns were exactly in the same place as if there were no east, west, north, or south. On her map, rooms of different sizes and shapes overlapped on the same level, but if she turned around, the rooms were still the same. It was as if each room occupied its own dimension without worrying about any architectural logic. Disgusted, Sarah threw away her pen.  
She was thirsty but did not dare to take out her bottle. It was more than half empty yet, and Sarah could not help but think of Proserpine and her pomegranate and Jareth's peach. Eating or drinking something from here could be deadly, or worse. She would not take the risk. Thirst, hunger, she could live with it.

Fatigue ... It was something else. Sarah was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Last night, she had barely slept, and it began to weigh on her shoulders. Her feet hurt since the swamp and her hands sting from the rope. She dreamed of sleeping, just for five minutes. Five minutes, it could not be so dangerous.

She closed her eyes but stopped herself immediately. She had to resume her exploration, she couldn't be weak. She could not. Sarah sat up.

The corridor she chose to take was dark and unpleasant, but she had already explored the other two passages that were leaving the room where she was standing. She engaged in it, carefully. So far, she had not met any inhabitant of the castle. It made her more and more nervous. Obviously, traps were waiting for her.

She wondered by what miracle she had not started any yet. Then she heard a sound that awfully looked liked a child crying nearby. Sarah froze, then rushed in that direction. Toby needed her, now. Still running, she opened the door in front of her while frantically searching for her brother's. She stepped forward and did not think to look at her feet before it was too late. She fell screaming in terror, unable to see anything.

When she hit a water surface in a loud crash, she briefly lost consciousness. The cold water rushing into her lungs soon brought her back to herself, and Sarah swam to the surface. She spat out some of the water she'd accidentally swallowed then swam in the dark. Silently, she begged tho find the end of what was probably a lake before she was too cold to move. Her swimming created an echo far away. The lake was huge, and the ceiling very high.

Finally, Sarah reached the shore of this subterranean lake and found a gravel beach under her feet. She moved away from the water, just enough to feel safe and slid into unconsciousness.

 

Sweet music awoke the young woman, and she opened her eyes. Expecting to find herself in darkness and on a bed of pebbles, she was surprised to discover herself in silk sheets. She was wearing the same clothes, but they were dry, and she would have sworn that her left sleeve, had been torn a few hours earlier. Now, it was intact. Her bag lay on the floor next to her bed. As she straightened up, she put a hand to her forehead. It hurt, but someone put bandaged on her wound. Earlier, she was so scared she did not even realize she was hurt.

A curtain of pearls rose in a soft tingle. Sarah turned to see a dozen smiling girls in gorgeous silk dresses. She mistrusted them immediately. The girls were smiling too much, and when she looked at them from the right angle, it was evident that they were not human. Their smiles make them look like snakes.

Did they think they could seduce her where the Goblins King had failed?

To give the change, Sarah smiled at them and stood up to pay her respects in turn. The girls laughed loudly while exchanging satisfied looks. They caressed her face and gave her comforting words. It was an obvious trap, but one you could get caught to none the less if you were not careful enough. The fifteen-year-old Sarah would have been seduced by these comforting faces, relieved to find compassion and kindness far from her enemies. However, Sarah was now an adult and educated. She allowed herself to be comforted and pretended to follow the girls when they invited her to choose a dress among dozens. All were more elegant and less practical than the others. As soon as they began to take these dresses out, Sarah seized her chance, grabbed her bag and rushed to the door.  
She did not go far. Clawed hands, covered with scales, seized her and pulled her back. Sarah clung desperately to her bag and tried to pull away from their clutch, in vain. One of the girls, now obviously snake-like, grabbed her by the hair and pulled her head back. Another forced her mouth open and made her swallow something sticky and bitter. Sarah tried to spit out, but they only let go of her head when they were sure that Sarah had ingested what they had made her eat and that she would not vomit. Satisfied, they released her and Sarah fell to the floor, nauseous. Around her, the walls were shaking. The colours seemed to blend into each other. A hand grabbed her face, and one of the girls stared while tracing two deep cuts on her cheeks with her claws. Sarah could not distinguish her features. Everything was blurring.

"Common, even for a mortal," murmured a woman's voice with disappointment. "I was expecting something a little more exceptional. Your name?"

"Sarah," she said in a slurred voice, half-conscious that she should shut up.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

She did not answer. She had no idea. She was Sarah, but she knew nothing else about herself. Yet she should have known. She was there for a reason, but she couldn't remember it right now. All she knew was that she had something to do, urgent, that the hour was ticking and that she was not going to succeed if she did not even remember what she was doing. Panic overwhelmed her, cutting her breath. Sarah cried. A hand rested on her back and began to caress her. Someone hummed to soothe her and helped her up.  
"It does not matter. You know what? You can leave here you want. You just have to find yourself."  
She was pushed into a new room where the light was so intense that Sarah closed her eyes. There was a loud burst of laughter and the sound of a door being shut, then she was left alone. Gradually, her nausea faded, and the world stopped spinning. Looking around, Sarah realized that she was standing in the centre of a room with eight walls, all covered with dozens of human-sized mirrors. She saw herself reflected in all of them. At least, she assumed it was her because the reflections mirrored her gestures. Yet she did not recognize herself in any of them, and all were different from each other. Some of the Sarah were adults, some other children or old women. All returned her frightened look.

"Only one of them is me, is it?"

Nobody answered.

With hesitation, Sarah stepped toward a mirror. Her wrinkled face gave her an uncertain but reassuring smile. She did not feel old, but maybe she was. The burden she felt on her shoulders could be her age. No, this Sarah looked happy, and she did not feel like it. It was not her.

"Are you sure about that?"

She was. Almost. Just as she was almost sure she wasn't one of the child Sarah, the one with the happy smile in her pink lace dress, or the one who cried without being able to stop, nor the one with the pierced jeans and the insolent look.

"Are you this one then?"

A mirror began to shine more than the others. The mirror Sarah was fifteen years old and wore a beautiful white ball gown. She was stunning as Sarah had always dreamed of being, not like some other reflections. It was the Sarah she wanted to be, beautiful, attracting the light on her like a flame. Sarah came closer, hypnotized, admiring her proud expression, her perfect hair and the way the jewels cascaded in it. She was so close to the reflection that her breath was settling on the mirror. Then, she noticed that this Sarah's look was looking so empty that she might as well have been dead. Disgusted, she turned away and stared at the opposite wall. A laugh accompanied her movement.  
"It's time to choose."

The threat was evident in the voice that popped up from all sides and seemed to bounce off the mirrors. Sarah took a deep breath and put her hand on a mirror where her reflection, dressed in a stern suit and her arms laden with books, gave her a satisfied smile. Instantly, the mirror disintegrated into dust, revealing a corridor in which Sarah rushed. She ran to a door, opened it, and found herself again in the mirror room.

"Bad choice."

These words, the voice repeated them over and over again while Sarah mistakenly recognized herself as a frightened girl, a middle-aged woman in a black dress, a dishevelled young woman with mad-eyed eyes and dozens of others. At each wrong choice, she ended up in the same room again and again, except that the mirrors, the choices multiplied, the room becoming immense and her image reflected everywhere, always distorted and never right.

Sarah finally froze in the centre of the room, desperately searching for a sign telling her who she was among the hundreds of reflections that weighed her with sarcastic indifference. She must have been there somewhere. She had to.

Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a reflection different from the others. She turned again and again, but whatever she did, the strange reflection was still on the periphery of her vision, as if deliberately trying to prevent her from seeing it. Sarah forced herself to stop looking for it and, intentionally, stared at another reflection. Looking vaguely in that direction, she could glimpse the one that interested her. She had to struggle to look indifferent as she realized what was wrong with it.  
She was not alone on this reflection.

There was a second shadow behind her, tall and dark, that seemed to envelop or hug her.

Sarah could not see its face and could not tell if the gesture was tender or threatening. It could be a trap. It was probably one. However, if they tried to make sure that she did not notice it, it might be something else. A clue. She took a deep breath, certain that she would not be given another chance. She ran, wringing her neck, so her looked stayed fixated on the first mirror. At the last second, she hit the one she had chosen, and her and Jareth's reflection exploded into millions of shards of glass.

No, she wanted to shout, it's not me, it's not part of me. Convinced that she had made a mistake, she continued running, pretty sure she would end up again in the mirrors' room. But the hallway continued, she remembered Jareth and Toby, the labyrinth, and herself and finally, she realized that she had won this test. Exhausted and disoriented, Sarah stopped running, dropped to the ground and fell asleep almost immediately.

 

 


End file.
